New York Newspaper Publishes Gun Owners' Names, Addresses
A newspaper in upstate New York is facing criticism after it published the names and addresses of gun owners throughout Westchester and Rockland counties.
The Journal News on Monday printed "The gun owner next door," which it reported by getting license information through Freedom of Information requests.
Westchester and Rockland counties provided names and addresses but denied the paper information about the number and type of guns possessed by each licensed owner. Putnam County was still processing the request and had not yet released information to the newspaper.
The article includes an interactive map of the two counties, allowing readers to see where each licensed owner lives.
Some commenters have criticized the Journal News for publishing the information.
"Do you fools realize that you also made a map for criminals to use to find homes to rob that have no guns in them to protect themselves?" One commenter wrote. "What a bunch of liberal boobs you all are."
"What RAG you guys publish," wrote another. "Only a Respectable News Outlet respects the privacy of private citizens."
A Westchester resident commented that publishing the information of people with guns amounts to publicizing those infected with auto-immune diseases.
"How about the journal news display how many people who have AIDS in this area," one wrote. "This is another way for people to fear people and cause segregation."
The article also notes that Dwight R. Worley, the reporter who wrote the story, owns a Smith & Wesson 686 .375 Magnum and has registered the weapon in New York City since February 2011.
The paper did not immediately respond to requests from TheWrap for comment.
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